Dear America,

We live in a divided country, I think we can all agree upon that. We are divided by our political beliefs, by religion, class, gender and race. There are the liberals, the conservatives, the Black people, the Muslims, the white people, the poor, the elite...there are men and women, Christians and atheists, gays and straights. The racists, the abolitionists. Those who seek information and those who seek ignorance. The comfortable and the uncomfortable.

Each one of us fits somewhere on that list. Each one of us lives in a world where any given day, we come across several people who are nothing like us...who are even the furthest thing from what we believe to be "right."

How many of you think it's okay to look down on someone who doesn't believe in the same God as you do? How many times have you looked at a Muslim and connected them with the word "terrorist" in your minds? How many times have you seen a Black man coming towards you and felt nervous? How many of you think it's a sin to love someone of the same gender? How many feel like Trump is the end of our country?

I don't think my opinion on who would have been the better president matters. And I certainly don't think it matters if someone is Indian, gay, Agnostic, Transgender, poor or liberal. What matters to me is the wellbeing of my home and the character of the people who share it with me.

America, why are we burning flags? Why are we committing hate crimes? Why are we plastering the words "Homosexuality is a sin" on billboards and allowing our veterans who fought for our freedom to have the worst healthcare possible? Why are we spreading hate and promoting shame?

We are supposed to be the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave. Hate, shame, belittling, acting out of anger...none of that is brave, and none of that will bring us freedom. We have to change what is inside us before we can ever expect change in our country.

I recently read a post from a Facebook friend of mine, a strong and proud female soldier stationed at Fort Campbell. She is a senior combat medic, meaning her job is to medically care for injured soldiers in her unit. She is on the front lines, so not only is she active in combat, she is the person who cares for the other soldiers fighting next to her. If someone gets shot, if a bomb goes off, she is the one who administers emergency medical treatment to keep her friends and fellow soldiers alive. This is a job she CHOSE to have.

I would like to share with you her feelings towards the men and women she fights to protect.

I have pasted her post below.

This morning I woke up around 0415, my usual time to get ready for work. Put on my PT uniform and headed out. Ran 4 miles with my battalion, some 500 of the most savage and bad ass individuals in the army. At the end of the run, we circled around and watched as our guys did combatives and whooped on each other like infantrymen do. Then my Battalion Commander and CSM walked up and gave their bad ass speeches about Veterans Day, which I expect nothing less from these individuals. They talked about the guys that came before us, and how my unit is one of the most decorated units in the army. How the 1-506 infantry regiment didn't take shit from anybody, and they still don't....

But as they were speaking about being Veterans, and the freedoms we fight for, for this nation... I couldn't help but get angry. I log on to my facebook and see a bunch of whiny ass people complaining because their candidate didn't win. Rioting and burning the American Flag "because their feelings are hurt." Which in any other country would be cause for treason and most likely end you in prison, or shot in the back of the head like they do in the Middle East. But hey, this is America, and this is what I fight for...

But I'm tired. I'm tired of sacrificing time away from my family for a bunch of ungrateful assholes stomping and burning the very flag that my friends have died for. The flag that my friends have shed blood for. The flag that I sacrifice for. The flag that I love. The country that I love. However, I'll continue to fight, because that's what I do. I'll continue to make sure that this nation remains a nation where you have the freedom to act like a damn 5-year old throwing a temper tantrum because they didn't get their way.

So I know it's hard for you bleeding heart, cry babies to understand what sacrifice is, but I'll continue to do it so you can continue to look like the jackasses the rest of the world thinks you are.

Just remember if you don't like this country, there's plenty of other ones... Try Iraq, I heard their democracy is great.

God Bless America

Please remember no matter how you feel, people are fighting for your rights, whether you are Latino, Atheist, elite, transgender, conservative, straight or employed. No matter what you believe, you have people sacrificing their lives for your freedom to believe what you wish, so why on earth would you aim to disregard anyone who is different than you, when that is the very thing our loved ones are fighting for? No matter what you disagree with, hate and acts derived from anger will never be the answer. On the contrary, they will only further divide us. Please remember that you are an American. We are all Americans. And it's time to fight for a country that can call itself united again.

America, stop dividing this country with your acts of hate, your impulsive reactions to not getting your way and your effortless judgment and disregard for this country as a whole. If you want to be a good American, behave like one that is worth fighting for. Start loving those who share this beautiful place we call home and accepting that change starts within our hearts.

God Bless those who protect our freedom.